Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin are reporting that they’ve built the first ever one-way acoustic device — a device that lets you hear something, without being heard in return. This breaks a fundamental rule in physics, called time reversal symmetry, that stipulates that if waves can travel in one direction, they must be able to travel in the opposite direction. In short, if you can hear someone, they can always hear you — except, with this new device, that’s no longer the case.

If you’re the sort that needs peace and quiet to get anything done, escaping the noise pollution of every day life — regardless of where you’re located — is no easy task. A white noise machine can help, but in the end it’s still electronic noise, and unless you can afford a fancy sound system, the noise often sounds unnatural. A new device that sticks onto your window, Sono, will not only cancel real-world noise, but isolate the noises you’d prefer to hear, if any.

Using a network of sensors, a team of researchers have unveiled plans to knit the world above and below the waves together to create an underwater internet. cCombining all the disparate networks of underwater acoustic sensors into one could improve data gathering and make important early warning systems more accessible and reliable.

Researchers at the University of Berkeley in California have created the first ever audio speaker (earphone). In its raw state, without any kind of optimization, the researchers show that graphene’s superior physical and electrical properties allow for an earphone with frequency response comparable to or better than a pair of commercial Sennheiser earphones.

As sophisticated phones, tablets, and handheld gaming devices become more prominent, a lot of the focus from the general consumer populace is directed toward those devices’ displays. However, those of you who have to scrunch up your legs under your desk, or meticulously maneuver your monitor in order to include speakers into your battlestation would probably like to hear that Fujifilm has its sight set on the speaker rather than the display, and has developed on that is flexible.

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